Rusty Wyatt seized an early championship advantage after defending World Champion Jonas Andersson suffered a cruel mechanical failure whilst dominating the Grand Prix of Indonesia, handing the Canadian his second consecutive victory on Lake Toba.
Andersson had controlled the weekend on Sumatra, claiming pole position, Sprint Race 1 victory and leading the main event for 17 laps before his Team Sweden boat ground to a halt. The stoppage promoted Wyatt from second to first, and the Sharjah Team driver held his nerve through the final restart to claim 25 points and open a five-point championship lead.
Victory Team’s Alec Weckström finished second ahead of Ben Jelf, who claimed his first F1H2O podium finish in third for F1 Atlantic Team. Wyatt’s team-mate Stefan Arand took fourth to complete a dominant weekend for Sharjah Team, who now hold a 10-point advantage in the Teams’ Championship.
Andersson Claims Pole In Breezy Conditions
The Swede demonstrated the pace of his new DAC in qualifying on Friday afternoon, posting a stunning lap of 55.995 seconds to secure his 15th career pole position. The three-time World Champion held off the Victory Team duo of Weckström and Shaun Torrente by 0.195 and 0.459 seconds respectively in a thrilling Q3 session where just 0.684 seconds separated the leading four drivers.
Last year’s race winner Wyatt qualified fourth, whilst Jelf produced an impressive performance to claim fifth despite completing only one lap in Q3 after running low on fuel. Norwegian racer Marit Strømøy made significant progress with the development of her four-stroke V8 360 APX Mercury-engined DAC, reaching Q3 for the first time and qualifying sixth.
Team Abu Dhabi’s Erik Stark and China CTIC Team’s Peter Morin qualified seventh and eighth, whilst 2023 race winner Bartek Marszalek and two-time World Champion Sami Sëlio were both eliminated in Q1 and faced starting the race from 16th and 17th positions.
Andersson Cruises To Sprint Race 1 Victory
The defending champion converted pole position into a commanding start-to-finish victory in Saturday morning’s opening Sprint race, easing to a 13.167-second winning margin over Wyatt.
Andersson admitted to nerves before the start: “Rusty is always fast and I have a new boat. It was good and it was enough to beat him to the first turn and after that it was very easy. A boat like this also does not run well when you go slow. The boat doesn’t handle if you don’t have full power.”
Jelf held off Morin to secure third place and his second podium finish of the weekend, whilst young Estonian Arand delivered a strong performance in fifth. Marszalek recovered from his disappointing qualifying to finish sixth ahead of Sëlio and Johan Österberg.
Torrente Ends Two-Year Victory Drought
Victory Team secured a 1-2 finish in Sprint Race 2 as Torrente passed team-mate Weckström on the opening lap and held on for a 2.061-second victory.
The emotional American, returning to F1H2O after two years away, was pumped after the win: “It’s been a long two years. You really find out who believes in you and who cares. I thought this part of my life was over. Man, I didn’t fly all this way not to take it all the way.”
Stark moved up to third after sorting the minor engine issues that had plagued his qualifying bid, whilst Alberto Comparato and Grant Trask completed the top five. Strømøy continued her strong weekend with sixth place in the four-stroke-powered DAC.
The result meant Torrente tied with Andersson at the top of the early championship standings heading into Sunday’s main event.
Drama As Andersson’s Dominance Ends
Indonesia’s Minister of Youth and Sports, Dito Ariotedjo, joined F1H2O officials at the pre-race briefing before taking part in the parade lap with the Indonesian flag.
The 24-lap Grand Prix began in controversy when Stark and Morin collided heavily at the first turn buoy, triggering an immediate yellow flag. Both drivers were eliminated in the incident, whilst Duarte Benavente also retired during the stoppage.
Andersson held his lead at the restart on lap seven, but Wyatt immediately pressured Weckström and snatched second place. The Canadian closed to within 4.297 seconds by lap 10, but could find no answer to Andersson’s relentless pace as the Swede maintained control through the middle stages.
The race transformed dramatically on lap 17 when Andersson ground to a halt whilst holding a commanding advantage. His retirement triggered a second yellow flag and handed Wyatt an unexpected lead with just four laps remaining when racing resumed.
Wyatt celebrated his second consecutive Lake Toba victory by jumping into the water off the start pontoon: “We started fourth last year and won it. We started fourth again this year and won it again. I made a couple of changes overnight and we had a couple of amazing starts. My team-mate Stefan had one heck of a run as well. I love Lake Toba!”
Jelf Claims Breakthrough Podium
The young British driver produced a mature performance to claim third place, maintaining his position throughout the drama to secure his first Grand Prix podium finish.
Arand completed a superb weekend for Sharjah Team in fourth, whilst Strømøy earned championship points with fifth place after consistently strong performances across all three races.
Trask delivered an impressive drive to sixth for China CTIC Team, ahead of Comparato, Damon Cohen, Marszalek and Ferdinand Zandbergen. Sëlio finished 11th ahead of rookie Mansoor Al-Mansoori on his Grand Prix debut.
Torrente’s return ended in disappointment when he withdrew with mechanical issues whilst running fifth with four laps remaining. Alexandre Bourgeot, Österberg and Cédric Deguisne also failed to finish.
Championship Battle Heats Up
Wyatt’s victory and Andersson’s retirement has blown the championship race wide open after just one round. The Canadian holds a five-point advantage over Andersson, with Torrente a further five points back in third despite his Sprint Race 2 victory.
Weckström sits fourth on 18 points, whilst Arand’s consistent performances have elevated him to fifth on 15 points ahead of Jelf.
| Pos | # | Driver | Team | Laps | Time/Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 17 | Rusty Wyatt | Sharjah Team | 24 | Race Time |
| 2 | 3 | Alec Weckström | Victory Team | 24 | +4.882s |
| 3 | 9 | Ben Jelf | F1 Atlantic Team | 24 | +11.003s |
| 4 | 18 | Stefan Arand | Sharjah Team | 24 | +16.222s |
| 5 | 50 | Marit Strømøy | Strømøy Racing | 24 | +20.278s |
| 6 | 2 | Grant Trask | China CTIC Team | 24 | +22.340s |
| 7 | 97 | Alberto Comparato | Comparato F1 Team | 24 | +28.791s |
| 8 | 98 | Damon Cohen | Comparato F1 Team | 24 | +30.590s |
| 9 | 77 | Bartek Marszalek | Strømøy Racing | 24 | +33.382s |
| 10 | 12 | Ferdinand Zandbergen | Red Devil-SMC F1 | 24 | +36.982s |
| 11 | 11 | Sami Seliö | Red Devil-SMC F1 | 24 | +39.742s |
| 12 | 5 | Mansoor Al-Mansoori | Team Abu Dhabi | 23 | +1 Lap |
| DNF | 8 | Johan Österberg | Team Sweden | – | DNF |
| DNF | 73 | Cédric Deguisne | Maverick Racing | – | DNF |
| DNF | 4 | Shaun Torrente | Victory Team | – | DNF |
| DNF | 1 | Jonas Andersson | Team Sweden | – | DNF |
| DNF | 74 | Alexandre Bourgeot | Maverick Racing | – | DNF |
| DNF | 10 | Duarte Benavente | F1 Atlantic Team | – | DNF |
| DNF | 7 | Peter Morin | China CTIC Team | – | DNF |
| DNF | 6 | Erik Stark | Team Abu Dhabi | – | DNF |
Neil Perkins, is a seasoned sports journalist and PR professional. Educated at Adams’ Grammar School, Newport, he developed a lifelong passion for sport, including football, cricket, golf, and snooker.
Perkins began his career as a trainee accountant before moving into sports journalism in 1986 with Motoring News, covering events worldwide. In 1990, he founded NDP Publicity Services in Shropshire, specialising in sports public relations. Over three decades, he has worked across 114 countries for governments, sporting federations, royalty, celebrities, and major events such as the Commonwealth Games, Asian Games, and Winter Olympics.
Outside work, he follows Ipswich Town FC, enjoys fishing in Spain and Shropshire, and travels to destinations including Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Catalunya, and Mexico.